The comet. (Johnson City, Tenn.) 1884-1916, 1887-05-05
GEN. JOHN H. WSrAER.
Chattanooga's Foremost Citizen on
the South.
'The Queen and CrescenL''---It
Is This City's Safety Valve
and Balance Wheel---A
Chat About Mineral
Wealth Now IBe-
ing Developed.
Cincinnati Times-star.

ing Developed.
Cincinnati Times-star.
Gen. John T Wilder. of Chattanoo-
ga, Tenn, is in the city, and is stop
ping at the St. Clair. General Wilders
case is one of the rare instances in
which Union and Republican soldier
from the North remained in the South
after the war, and had his interest full
ly assimilate and harmonic with
those of that region. Wonderful sue
cess has attended his every enterprise
in the South.
Doubtless he has done more than
any other man to develop the rich re-
sources ofthat country. Gen. Wilder's
appearance savors strongly OF the typ
ical well-to-do farmer of the State of
his neutrality-suspicious.. His clothes
were evidently chosen entirely with
an eye to the wear. His countenance
is eminently earnest and honest, but
not at all striking He isverging close
onto sixty years, but his tall and port
ly form is evidently full of vigor He
talks rapidly, and, in substance, said
to-day:
"l am essentially pioneer by dis
position. Wheneyeran enterprise gets
to running along smoothly in a rut,
get out.ofit. For this reason am now
out of a majority ofmy enterprises of
few years ago. l made the first
iron that was made in the South with
mineral fuel. / have seen Chattanooga,
influenced by this industry grow more
than any other, grow from a town of
2, 500 inhabitants to its present pro-
portions as city of $4,000. Chatta-
nOoga has the best basis for prosperity
OF any city / know of in the South.
This basis is principally her factories
She has almost as many Of them as
have Atlanta and Birmingham COM
bined. She is growing more rapidly
now than at any other period of her
existence.
"The future OF the Cincinnati South
ern Railroad depends altogether of
course, on the management. | do not
know much about its management,
but think the road pays too much
rental, and the arrangements for trans
fer OF freight at this end are deficient.
This road is naturally the great line
OF the South. Few business men of
Chattanooga ever think of shipping
over any other. / would call this road
the safety-valve and balance-wheel
of Cincinnati's Southern business. Gin
cinnati lost great deal of business by
not building the line immediatelyaf-
ter the close of the war, but is now
rapidly gaining this same trade.
II am now mainly engaged in devel-
oping the region of magnetic ore Ga
pure Bessemer ore) OF East Tennessee
and Western North Carolina, To this
end we are building the Charleston,
Cincinnati & Jhicago Railroad, OF
which am Vice-President. This road
begins at Charleston, on the coast, and
terminates in the Hanging Rock dis
trict, only $50 miles from Cincinnati
on the Chic river. 1t runs through
the coke fields of Southern Virginia
and Kentucky--eQual to any in the
world in quality and quantity-and
connects the same with the Bessemer
ore beds Of East Tennessee and Wes-
tern North Carolina. Owing to the
proximity OF its terminous to Cincin-
natl, $50 miles by water, insuring
cheap transportion, it is the most inn
poltant road as to this city's interests
of any now being built"